Eye of the Beholder
by Katana Rey
Summary: Quatre writes a fairytale using GW pilots as characters. What do the rest of the pilots think of his story? Read and find out. Be warned, this is YAOI, citrus. I blame Steven Sondheim and his wonderful 'Into the woods' for this mess.


OOC, AU  
  
Eyes of the beholder  
By Katana Rey  
  
Once upon time, in a faraway kingdom lived a beautiful young prince named Quatre.   
  
* * *  
  
'Hey!'  
  
Quatre looked up from his notes, a disapproving frown wrinkling his perfect nose. He glared at Duo who had gotten to his knees and were now waving his hand frantically, signalling him to stop.   
'Yes?' Quatre asked coolly.   
  
'How come the prince's name is Quatre?' Duo asked semi-belligerently. 'I thought you said that this story was going to be about me.'  
  
'And if he hadn't said that, you wouldn't have agreed to shut up.' Wufei muttered under his breath, turning his head away quickly to avoid a sharp glare from Duo.   
  
'Do you want me to continue or not?' Quatre asked, looking distinctly annoyed by all the chatter, and gave a nasty glare at Trowa and Heero who had been silently exchanging jabs with their elbows.  
  
'So then...' Quatre cleared his throat and returned to his story.  
  
* * *  
  
The prince was an orphan, having lost both his parents in a traffic accident involving their carriage and a short sighted dragon. The dragon came by the palace to apologise afterwards and Quatre made him promise to wear his glasses in the future, hoping to prevent a repeat of the tragic accident.   
  
* * *  
  
Quatre stopped and peered at his audience, who were staring at him in complete silence, and beamed in particular at Wufei, approving of the way he was focusing intensely on the story. He wondered why Trowa's cheeks were slightly flushed and felt a bit irritated by the way Heero just sat there with a totally blank look on his face. He definitely didn't like the way Duo's shoulders were shaking though the American seemed to be quite happy to simply listen for the moment. He was feeling kind of proud, though a little embarrassed by this opportunity to share his writing with his friends.   
  
'The dragon, whose name was Wufei...' Quatre stopped again, a frown puckering his smooth forehead as a muffled shriek of laughter burst from Duo and he collapsed, holding his stomach tightly. Heero wordlessly righted his giggling companion and nodded to Quatre to continue.   
  
'As I was saying,' Quatre glared coldly at his friends before turing his attention back to his notes.   
  
* * *  
  
The dragon Wufei, and Prince Quatre became close friends and spent many happy days together, and eventually, Wufei confessed to Quatre that he had been a prince in his own country before he was cursed by an evil sorcerer and transformed into his current hideous form. Quatre felt sorry for Wufei and asked if there was anything that he could do to help. But Wufei told him not to worry about it, since he had gotten used to being a dragon over three hundred years ago and wasn't too keen on losing all his powers.   
  
One day, five ministers of state came to see Quatre. They told him that it was past time he got married and produced an heir for his kingdom. Quatre didn't really want to get married, since he wasn't in love with anyone but he knew that it was his duty so he agreed to hold a ball to invite all the eligible bachelors to the castle.  
  
* * *  
  
'Bachelors?' Wufei blurted out involuntarily, turning a deep red when the other pilots turned to him as one and told him to hush. 'Sorry.' He muttered, adding under his breath, 'if he's going to marry a guy, I'd like to know who he thinks is going to have his baby.'  
  
* * *  
  
The ball opened on a Friday night and was to be repeated on the following Saturday night. Quatre felt a bit nervous about meeting all these new people, especially since he was supposed to select his future bride from one of them. But a part of him was also looking forward to seeing so many bishonens in one place. His ministers had promised that they would only invite the most beautiful men in the kingdom. They also invited a couple of princes from the neighbouring kingdoms as well. Including Prince Heero of Sanq Kingdom and Prince Trowa of Barton Kingdom.'  
  
* * *  
  
'And...?'  
  
Quatre scowled at Duo. 'I can't believe you are interrupting me. Again.' He hissed coldly and waited pointed for Duo to sit back down.  
  
Duo put his hands on his hips and glared at the silent blond, knowing that the stubborn Arab had no intention of resuming the story unless he shut up and sat down. So he gave in with ill grace, adding in a low growl. 'You are a prince. Heero and Trowa are princes. Even Wufei is a prince. Of sorts. What about me, I'd like to know. Why aren't I in the story yet?'  
  
* * *  
  
Unbeknownst to the prince, there was one other who was coming to the ball. Though he wasn't a prince. In a small village near the castle, there lived a young boy, who had lost his parents due to a clumsy woodcutter, who had accidentally caused a tree to fall on their house.  
  
* * *  
  
'Is it me or are there an awful lot of accidents in this story?' Trowa muttered to Heero who jabbed him with his elbow motioning him to fall silent.  
  
* * *  
  
After the death of his parents, the boy, whose name was Duo, went to live with the mayor and his shrewish wife. Mrs Mayor was a cruel and heartless woman who made the poor orphan do all the housework, telling him that he should be grateful for their kindness. So day after day Duo drudged on, doing all the cleaning, washing, laundry, cooking and more. He heard about the ball from the Mayor's niece Hilde, who suggested that he try to crash the party and meet the young prince, or at least someone with a lot of money, and marry his way out of poverty. She agreed to pay for the cost of his outfit, if he promised to pay her back with interest, after his wedding.   
* * *  
  
'I don't think I like the way this story is going.' Wufei frowned, folding his arms across his chest. 'It's dishonourable to consider marriage for profit.'  
  
'Shut up man.' Duo tossed a cushion at Wufei, 'if I can keep my mouth shut during this hatchet job Q-boy is doing on me, so can you.' And he turned his attention back on Quatre with a 'wait till your story is finished' glint in his eyes.  
  
* * *  
  
So Duo snuck away from the Mayor's home on Friday night, clutching the bundle of clothes Hilde had gotten for him. His heart was hammering with excitement at the thought of the wonderful party and all the beautiful bishonens he would get to meet. He hoped that he would be able to sneak in without the gold embossed invitation. He eagerly changed his old tattered shirt for the soft creamy silk blouse and pulled on the black tunic over his head. Then he pulled on the matching black pants and shining boots. Lastly he put on the gleaming silver belt, marvelling at the beautiful falcon design on the buckle. Hilde had obviously gone to a lot of trouble and expense.   
  
Duo opened the small noted that had been enclosed in the bundle and read:  
  
'I recommend loose hair. Good luck. H.'  
  
He beamed and undid his long braid, and brushed and brushed until it fell behind him in silken chestnut waves. Duo had always been very proud of his beautiful hair, though it had provided an unfortunately handy grab-hold for Mrs Mayor who had an unpleasant habit of pulling on his braid whenever she wanted to talk to him.   
  
Duo whistled lightly as he started to walk back towards the road. Then he stopped and listened for a minute as he heard a loud cry followed by a thudding sound. Duo broke into a run, feeling curious and a little worried. He burst out of the woods and saw a still body on the ground, a white-feathered hat lying behind the crumpled figure. Duo ran to the unconscious body and gently lifted him then gasped as he stared into the face of the most beautiful boy he had ever seen.   
  
Trowa slowly opened his eyes and ...  
  
* * *  
  
'What?' Duo screamed together with Trowa. 'What do you mean Trowa?' He repeated with a freezing glare at the redhead who had lost his usual look of serenity, 'I think you meant to say Heero.' He smirked at Heero, who simply turned his head away, without saying a word. 'Just keep going but change the name.' He advised, cracking his knuckles in a meaningful way.  
  
Quatre glared at him, 'as long as I'm telling the story, I get to name my characters. Interrupt me again and I'll have Duo eaten alive by a Queen snake.' He harrumphed, and returned to his notes.  
  
'Trowa...' Quatre looked around his audience with a freezing glare.  
  
* * *  
  
... looked up and saw a heart-shaped face with dazzling violet eyes staring down at him with a big smile and automatically smiled back. He slowly got up and groaned as his sore muscles protested his every move. He introduced himself to the handsome stranger and discovered that Duo had also been on his way to Prince Quatre's ball, so he suggested that Duo follow him back to his encampment and join his party. Duo was delighted by this opportunity and he eagerly agreed to join with Trowa and travel to the ball together.   
  
During the journey in the Royal Barton Carriage, Duo discovered that actually Trowa wasn't even interested in Prince Quatre. He was only going because he was worried about Prince Heero, who had been forced to attend the wedding by his cruel step-father, who wanted an alliance with the more powerful Winner Kingdom. In fact, he and Heero had been in love with each other ever since their fathers betrothed them at age seven. But when Heero's father passed away five years ago, and his mother remarried four years ago, the engagement had been called off. And Trowa had no longer been welcome in Sanq Kingdom.   
  
Duo sniffed sadly, feeling sorry for the beautiful young prince and maybe just a tiny bit sorry for himself that such a good looking guy was already taken. He told Trowa all about his harsh life and how he was now trying to find a rich husband to rescue him from his daily toil and the generous prince offered to introduce him to as many rich men as possible at the ball.  
  
* * *   
  
'Kisama.' Wufei looked shocked as he turned his head from Trowa, who was looking definitely annoyed under his bang, to Duo, who looked half delighted, half furious. 'You two have no morals.'  
  
'Oh be quiet, twit.' Duo hissed softly, starting to chew on the end of his braid. 'If I don't get a good deal at the end of the story, you are toast, Q-boy.'  
  
* * *  
  
The ball was everything a young man could hope for. The tables lining the walls were creaking from the weight of the food and drinks. There were flowers and ribbons festooned all around the stunning ballroom, crystal chandeliers glittered with iridescent fire from the ceiling and the doors were opened wide, allowing the gentle flower scented breeze to float in from the adjoining gardens. Duo forced his jaw to close and tried not to look too out of place as he casually sauntered in, behind Trowa, who looked magnificent in his dark blue and gold gilded outfit. He smiled widely and tucked his hand into Trowa's waiting arm as all eyes turned to the arresting couple who had just walked in. Including a pair of intense blue eyes from the dancing floor.   
  
Heero sucked in his breath sharply, stung by a sudden pang in his chest when Trowa walked into the ballroom with a gorgeous brunette on his arms. He stood numbly, forgetting everything except the tall elegant figure walking towards him. Until a gentle tap on his shoulder reminded him of his dancing partner, who had been standing patiently by his side, and pasted on a quick smile as he realized that the music had resumed and Quatre was still holding out his hand.   
  
A wave of approving murmur went up in the ballroom as the dark haired and golden haired princes started to slowly glide across the floor, turning in perfect unison, to each other and to the music. Quatre was wearing a gold patterned ivory outfit and the young prince appeared to be glowing as he stared happily into the large eyes of his lovely partner, who complemented him perfectly in silver patterned pale green.   
  
Trowa looked severely depressed as he looked on Heero and Quatre dancing. Duo thought frantically about how he could cheer up his companion when suddenly Trowa turned to him with a graceful bow and asked him to dance. Duo nodded with enthusiasm, a quick smile lighting up his face. He sneaked a peek at the beautiful pair on the floor and decided that he didn't blame Trowa for not wanting to lose his fiancé, though he thought that Prince Quatre looked very fetching as well.  
  
* * *  
  
'Why is it, that you are the one playing around and I'm the one getting character assassinated?' Duo whispered behind his hand to Heero, who merely grunted in reply.  
  
'Shocking.' Wufei murmured to himself, 'such loose morals. I can't believe that Quatre can write about such things. Obviously, his character is not as pure and honourable as I had believed.'  
  
Trowa said nothing, listening intently with his green eyes held firmly on the angelic looking blond telling the story.  
  
* * *  
  
At last the dance finished and Prince Quatre led Prince Heero to one of the balconies, making sure to select the one looking over the rose garden. He thought that he could probably be happy if the quiet but beautiful prince agreed to marry him. He wasn't too sure what Heero thought of him yet but he was pretty confident that given time, he would learn to love him, even as he was already beginning to fall in love the serious looking beauty.   
  
Trowa paled when he saw the two princes disappear behind the heavy curtain discretely separating the balcony from the ballroom. He grabbed hold of Duo's hand and dragged him away from the flock of admirers that had surrounded the chestnut haired beauty at the end of their dance, trying to solicit him for a dance. Duo started to protest but shut his mouth when he saw how grim Trowa looked. He felt sorry for the prince, knowing how much he must be hurting at the thought of losing Heero. But he was also beginning to feel very uncomfortable about being dragged into this whole business. Duo hoped fervently that Trowa wouldn't make a scene and ruin all his chances of making a good marriage.   
  
He swallowed nervously as he and Trowa went out into the next balcony and surreptitiously crawled to the edge, trying to overhear the couple who were speaking in lowered tones. He and Trowa exchanged a quick look of consternation when they heard Quatre say 'marry me Heero' and Duo shut his eyes in panic as his companion sprang to his feet and jumped up on the edge of the balcony, before leaping and executing a perfect triple somersault, landing at the feet of Heero, who gazed at the kneeling prince with a mixture of consternation and horrified delight.   
  
Duo peeked through his fingers at the frozen tableau, his legs shaking with fright.   
  
He heard Trowa challenge Quatre for Heero. Duo stared agape as the blond prince agreed to accept the challenge then left the balcony with a kiss on Heero's hand. He hesitated, torn between curiosity and good manners as Heero and Trowa stood staring into each other's eyes, their hands almost but not quite touching.   
  
'Excuse me.'  
  
Duo turned around, his face flaming with embarrassment then screamed at the top of his voice before turning in a whirl of chestnut hair and fleeing back into the ballroom.   
  
Wufei scratched his nostril delicately with one extended claw, trying not to feel too hurt. Deciding to ignore the long-haired beauty who fled so rudely, he turned his attention on the other couple who remained frozen on the adjoining balcony.   
  
'Hi.' He smiled politely and Heero and Trowa involuntarily quailed at the sight of all the sharp glistening teeth. 'Would one of you mind terribly getting Quatre for me? I just want to ask him how much longer the party is going to be. It's just that I want to get to sleep soon and I'm starting to feel a bit chilly.'   
  
Heero nodded mutely and left the balcony.  
  
Wufei turned back to Trowa who managed to hold his ground, though his hand kept twitching, as though trying to grab something. 'Your boyfriend is cute but you're cuter.' One of the golden eyes of the dragon flickered, in an approximation of a wink. 'I'm Wufei. A friend of Quatre, a nice guy but a real bad loser. He goes off something shocking whenever he thinks he's in a competition. I thought I'd just drop a friendly word. If my pal has his heart set on that pretty little boyfriend of yours, maybe you should just look elsewhere. Plenty of other fish in the sea. Know what I mean?'  
  
Trowa straightened his tunic stiffly, feeling angered by the overly familiar tone adopted by the massive beast. 'It's really not any of your concern. I'll thank you to keep your nose out of my affairs, dragon.'  
  
'Wufei.' The dragon growled. He added pointedly, 'I'm Prince Wufei. Of Shenlong Kingdom. I got cursed into this shape by that stupid sorcerer who just can't take no for an answer.'  
  
* * *  
  
'Let me guess who the sorcerer is.' Duo piped up with a wicked gleam in his eyes as he gave a sidelong glance at Wufei, who was starting to turn red. 'It wouldn't be Sorcerer Treize by any chance?' He sniggered loudly as Quatre hesitated before giving a reluctant nod. 'Boy. Talk about predictable. Hey!' He yelped indignantly as Heero thwacked him with his own braid.   
  
'Let him finish the story. Now.' Heero spoke sternly, folding his arms.  
  
* * *  
  
Trowa felt a bit guilty for trying to snub the dragon, especially considering his unfortunate circumstances. So he apologised politely and handsomely offered his assistance in finding a cure for Wufei's curse.   
  
In the meanwhile, Duo was having a wonderful time, once he recovered from his shock with the lavish servings of ice cream from his eager admirers. He was the undeniable belle of the ball, since the three princes had all managed to disappear somewhere during the night. He danced, chattered and laughed with delight as he whirled from one partner to another, having too much fun to remember his objective in attending the ball. He hoped that the ball would never end.   
  
After midnight, Duo felt a bit hot so he managed to sneak away from his admirers and snuck into the grounds, hoping that he would feel cooler by the lake. On the way he espied a lone figure sitting on the pavilion at the centre of the rose garden and on impulse decided to check out who it was. He jumped lightly inside, forcing the person inside to snap his head up in surprise and they both cried out in mutual shock.  
  
'You.' Heero blurted, too startled by the sudden appearance of the beautiful boy who he had last seen on Trowa's arms, to think of anything more coherent.  
  
'Heero.' Duo blurted out reflexively, having gotten used to the name during his talk with Trowa. 'What are you doing here? Where is Trowa?'  
  
Heero glared at Duo with suspicion and hostility. 'How do you know my name? Who are you? And what's your relationship with Trowa? And why would I know where Trowa is? Isn't he with you?'  
  
'Huh?' Duo started to answer automatically, 'I'm Duo. And I'm a friend. I don't have a relationship with Trowa. And I thought he was with you. And hey... what d'you I'm 'with' him? Watch your language pal. I have a reputation to protect if I'm going to make a good marriage.'  
  
Heero stared at the stranger helplessly, feeling very confused and more than little distracted by the discovery that Duo was even more beautiful close up than he had been when he first saw him. He sighed and sat back down, trying to organise his disarrayed thoughts.  
  
'I'm sorry.' He offered with hand with a genuine smile and after a moment's hesitation, Duo slowly reached out his hand and took it. 'I don't know where Trowa has disappeared to. Last time I saw him, he was talking to that dragon but when I returned to the balcony with Quatre, only the dragon was there. So I left him and Quatre, since apparently this Wufei was a friend of his and went to look for Trowa but couldn't find him anywhere. So...' He shrugged, 'I'm just resting a little since I got tired from all that searching.'  
  
'I'm sorry too.' Duo squeezed the hand he was still holding, only to blush deeply and drop his hands when Heero turned his eyes curiously on his face. 'That is... I haven't seen Trowa. But maybe, he's looking for you. Don't you think? I mean, you've been running around trying to find him and I bet he's been doing the same thing.' He grinned triumphantly, happy at having made Heero feel better.   
  
* * *  
  
'Okay. That's it. Enough with the mushy stuff. Let's get back to the curse.' Wufei interrupted at last, having completely lost his patience. 'Or do you intend to leave me as a dragon forever?'  
  
Quatre controlled his impulse to throw a heavy object at Wufei, just barely, and gritted his teeth as he started to leaf through his notes, trying to find an appropriate place to resume his narrative.   
  
'I was kind of enjoying it.' Duo muttered to himself and wrapped his arms around Heero's shoulders, leaning his head against that slender neck. Trowa leaned in and whispered in Heero's ear, the one away from the side where Duo's baleful eye was glaring at him. 'I thought you were my fiancé.' Heero said nothing but the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.   
  
* * *  
  
Sorcerer Treize raised his hand and a bolt of white lightning sizzled from his outspread palm and slammed into the bronze scaled hide of Wufei, causing the dragon to roar in pain, before spitting back a ball of fire that impacted harmlessly against Treize's glowing red aura.  
  
* * *  
  
'Hey!' Duo protested, jerking his head up from Heero's shoulder in indignation. 'You can't just jump the story like that. I have no idea what's going on! And when did Treize get into the story? This is all your fault.' He said accusingly to Wufei.  
  
'Just be quiet. It sounds a bit more interesting now.' Wufei made shooing motions with his hands as he told Quatre to continue with a satisfied smile.  
  
* * *  
  
Wufei roared again, this time in frustration as once again, he spat out another ball of fire, only to flap his wings desperately trying to manoeuvre his big bulk out of the way when Treize hurtled his own weapon back at him. He was growing desperate, feeling himself grow weaker and weaker from the Sorcerer's attacks. He turned his head down to the ground where he saw that Trowa was still trying to fight his way to the centre of the battlefield where Heero was engaged on a one-on-one combat with Zechs, the leader of the mercenary group working for Treize. He felt his heart lurch with panic as his eyes stopped at the crumpled figure behind Heero, a long arrow sticking out of his side. Wufei felt sick as he saw the beautiful shining mass of chestnut hair spread on the ground, becoming slowly matted by the pool of dark red blood that seemed to grow bigger every time he looked.  
  
* * *  
  
'Noooooo!' Duo stood up and grabbed the notes from Quatre's hand and started to leaf through them frantically. 'You can't kill me off! I refuse to be killed off! Do you hear me? My god. Somebody has to save me.' He dropped the notes, ignoring the loud squeal of rage behind him, as the pages fluttered to the ground and turned to Heero with his arms stretched out. 'Heero. You'll save me. Right? Tell me that I'm not dead. That horrible Quatre! I can't believe he's just killed me off.'  
  
'You... you.. idiot!' Quatre shrieked at last, 'you just totalled the mood of my story! I hate you. I'm never going to tell you another story as long as I live. And I am going to kill you off. Right now.' He grabbed the notes to his chest protectively and dashed out of the room.   
  
Duo stared after the blond in bemusement then picked up the piece of paper that Quatre had dropped.   
  
* * *  
  
'I'll never forget Wufei's sacrifice.' Duo smiled through tearful eyes, as he stared adoringly at Trowa, who simply tightened his arms around him, unable to express his happiness at having Duo returned to him.   
  
Quatre dropped a consoling hand on Heero's shoulder as the dark haired prince looked on with a wistful smile. 'I'll do my best to make you happy.' He whispered softly into Heero's ear as he snuggled in closer into his embrace. Heero patted the arms around him and felt the last remnants of his jealousy die away as he rubbed his cheek against Quatre's. 'You already have.' He whispered back softly and...  
  
* * *  
  
Duo looked up from the page, conflicting emotions warring openly on his face. 'I'm... I'm alive.' He turned to Wufei, who looked rather shell shocked. 'Thanks to you buddy. I'm alive. I didn't get killed off. You did.' He jumped around with glee, his braid bouncing behind him/' as he started to get more and excited. 'I'm alive. And I live happily ever after with...' Duo came to a sudden stop, his eyes wide with dismay. 'Hey.' He smoothed out the paper that he had crushed in his excitement and quickly re-read the last bit, this time making sure he was reading it to the end of the page. 'Why that no-good, sneaky, boyfriend stealing blond! He's paired me off with Trowa. And he's taken Heero! I'll kill him. I'll... oh no! He's just gone off to change the ending of the story!' Duo screamed in horror.  
  
'It took him this long to figure that out?' Trowa muttered to Heero who just shook his head and motioned to him to remain silent. The two boys stayed silent while Duo and Wufei started running madly towards the door, each desperate to reach Quatre before the other, screaming abuse and kicking each other occasionally as they squeezed through the door, scraping elbows and legs, and disappeared, their footsteps thumping loudly from the corridor.  
  
'So what did you think of the story?' Trowa asked Heero curiously.   
  
Heero shrugged. 'The plot was improbable, overly dramatic. Characterisation was obviously filled with flaws in motivation and background development. Especially,' he added firmly, his eyes glimmering with amusement as he stared appraisingly at the beautiful face above him, 'the bit where I dump you for Quatre. Otherwise, apart from the extensive graftings from other stories, notably fairytales and even more lamentable reading material our friend has been indulging in, I thought it was pretty good.'  
  
Trowa twined his arms around the narrow waist and pulled Heero in closer together. 'You are a tough critic to please.' He said softly even as he started to drop kisses down Heero's neck and on his face, brushing his lips against the smooth warm flesh and breathing in the delicate spicy scent of Heero's favourite soap.  
  
Heero wrapped his arms around Trowa's neck and buried his head against the tall man's chest, feeling the gentle thumping of the rapidly beating heart under his head.   
  
'It depends on who's trying to please me.'   
  
He raised his head and Trowa felt his heart skip a beat when he looked down on the delicate face, usually so cold in its perfection, aglow with warmth and love, and felt dazzled as he stared into the huge blue eyes, framed with heavy dark lashes, and wished this moment would last forever.  
  
The two lovers broke from their embrace with a start when they heard a loud scream, followed by a sound of a gunshot. They looked at each other in bemusement, still a little caught up in their special moment, then Heero muttered, 'Duo' and ran out of the room.   
  
Trowa stared at the empty doorway for a long while before shaking his head in resignation. He looked at the cushion rolling around near his feet and gave it a good strong kick. 'Duo'.   
  
He could see why Quatre had turned to writing stories to relieve his frustrated longings, though he hadn't appreciated being saddled with Duo over much. He also couldn't understand why Quatre had decided to kill Wufei off... unless... Trowa groaned to himself. He didn't think he could take it if any more of his friends decided to compete for Heero's affections.   
  
'Um... excuse me...'   
  
Trowa turned around and blinked when he saw the shy looking bishonen with long dark hair fidgeting with embarrassment at the door.   
  
'I.. I'm sorry to just walk in like this but no one answered and I've been pressing the bell for ever and the door just swung open when I just touched it I swear I didn't break in or anything but I heard a lot of noises...' The stranger trailed off and smiled weakly as he gasped for breath. 'Anyway, I heard screams and thought I better check it out. I'm sorry if I'm intruding, I'll go, shall I?'  
  
'Wait.' Trowa called out, as the stranger blushed deeply and bowed over and over as he edged backwards out of the doorway, 'who are you and what did you want?'  
  
'Oh. I'm Tenchi. Tenchi Masaki.' Tenchi beamed sweetly as he put his hand behind his head and laughed awkwardly. 'I'm sorry. I didn't say why I was here, did I?' He blushed again, as he looked away from Trowa, his hands fidgeting nervously together as he spoke. 'I came to see a classmate. Heero Yuy. He just joined my class today. And um... I thought that maybe he needed some help with his homework and...' Tenchi trailed off, his face flaming scarlet as his voice died away. 'I'll just go. You don't have to tell Heero I was here. I'll just see him at school tomorrow. So... um... Goodbye. Sorry to have disturbed you.' He bowed over and over as he backed out of the doorway and out of Trowa's sight.  
  
Trowa stared blankly the empty doorway, wondering numbly if any more of Heero's admirers would materialize. He flinched involuntarily when a shadow appeared and stifled a yelp as Wufei stuck his head in, looking rather dishevelled and tired.   
  
'Have you seen Quatre?' Wufei asked grimly.  
  
Trowa shook his head and Wufei walked into the room and flung himself on the sofa with a loud curse.   
  
'Where's Duo?' Trowa asked, and added unwillingly, 'and Heero? He went to see if you guys were okay.'  
  
Wufei growled, 'don't mention that idiot to me ever again! Did you know that he's been telling Quatre that I've been having an affair with Heero? No wonder that little bastard turned me into a dragon and killed me off. I wouldn't go anywhere near a guy who's got two certifiable nutcases interested in him.' Wufei snorted to himself, totally missing the slight flinch by Trowa. 'Who in their right minds would waste his time on that fickle two timing playboy?' He demanded aggressively, 'even if he was interested in me, and of course he is,' he continued serenely, not noticing the sudden clenching of Trowa's hands, 'I refuse to be embroiled in such an immoral situation. It's not honourable to be involved with more than one person at a time. And yeah, yeah,' he waved his hand wearily when Trowa started to speak, 'I know that he's only dated them one at a time. But he hasn't dumped them yet. See?' Wufei hissed furiously, 'he just keeps picking these guys up and forgets to get rid of them when he's finished with them.'  
  
'That's not true.' Trowa tried to defend his lover but couldn't shake off feeling some uneasy qualms at Wufei's words. He frowned as he thought over Wufei's words and suddenly felt suspicious of the angry Chinese. 'Um... you haven't actually been involved with Heero yet. Or have you?' He asked, trying to sound nonchalant as he slipped in the accusation.   
  
Wufei reddened and looked away.  
  
'It didn't mean anything. I can't compromise my honour and friendship for the sake of an undependable emotion like love. I... I wish.... Nothing. Just forget that I said anything. Nothing happened between me and Heero and nothing is going to.' He ended firmly, though his voice shook slightly as he repeated the word, 'nothing'.   
  
Trowa hesitated, torn between his desire to comfort his friend, and his need to find Heero, before the painful doubts sown by Wufei's words took root in his heart and destroyed the fragile love and trust between Heero and himself. He wanted to see Heero, to hold him and to see that look of love in his eyes once more, to reassure himself that it was real and that it was for him and only him. Duo and Quatre had annoyed him with their constant competition for Heero's attention and he has felt more than a little jealousy at times when Heero would allow the two to drag him into one mess after another. But in the end, he had been quite secure that Heero had given his heart only to him. And now Wufei's words had cast that into doubt. Trowa felt the foundations of his world crumbling from beneath his feet. If he couldn't trust in Heero and his love for him.... No. Trowa shook his head firmly. He had to believe in Heero.   
  
'Excuse me.'  
  
Wufei and Trowa turned around and stared at the tall handsome brunette standing in the doorway.  
  
'I'm here to see someone called Heero Yuy? Is he anywhere on the premises?'   
  
Trowa groaned out loud, drawing Wufei and the stranger's attention to him as he buried his face in his hands.  
  
'No. I can't take it anymore. Not another one. Just how many more are there?'  
  
The stranger blinked in confusion, looking at the distressed redhead with concern.   
  
'I'm sorry?' He asked politely as he put his briefcase down on the floor. 'I don't understand. Has another detective been sent here? I thought I was the only one.'  
  
'Detective?' Trowa lifted his head from his hands and exchanged a blank look with Wufei. 'What detective?'  
  
'This detective.' The stranger answered involuntarily then groaned at himself. 'I mean. Me. That is.' He took a deep breath. 'I'm Detective Conan. I have an appointment with Mr Yuy. Is he around?'  
  
'Yes.'  
  
'No.'  
  
Trowa and Wufei blurted out together then glared at each other before trying again.  
  
'No.'  
  
'Yes.'  
  
Trowa scowled at Wufei until he reluctantly repeated, 'No,' and both boys turned around with their arms folded on their chest and glared at the detective.  
  
Conan waited for a minute then repeated. 'Are you sure Mr Yuy isn't here?'  
  
'Yes. Definitely.' Trowa answered firmly.  
  
'Oh yeah. He's not here. Not at all. He's not standing behind you... oh shit.' Wufei trailed off in confusion as Heero, Duo and Quatre peeked at them from behind Conan's shoulders. 'This wasn't my idea.' He added quickly.  
  
'Hi Detective Conan.' Duo smiled happily as he squeezed in through the doorway. 'It's nice to see you again.'  
  
'Hello.' Heero greeted quietly, waiting politely until Conan moved out of the doorway and entered the room after Duo.   
  
'What are you doing here?' Quatre asked coldly as he followed behind them, ranging himself next to Heero and Trowa.  
  
'Hi Duo. Heero, nice to see you again. I've got some good news. And Quatre.' The warmth in Conan's voice dropped perceptibly when he spoke the blond's name. 'I see that you haven't changed much since last October.'  
  
'So what's the news?' Duo asked eagerly, 'are you going to arrest Quatre again?' He giggled as Quatre shot him a furious glare. 'That'd be good news. At least funny news.' He amended with another giggle.   
  
'No.' Conan replied with a grin of his own. 'I don't think the precinct has enough men to try that again. And besides which my news is for Heero. I'm here to tell him that we've recovered his stolen Kuwasaki and that he can come and claim it whenever it suits him. Or he can come with me now if he likes.' He added with a sudden flashing smile at Heero, who smiled back politely.  
  
'Oh no, he won't.' Trowa snapped out in unison with Quatre, who stopped in surprise as the usually quiet redhead grabbed hold of Heero's arm with a possessive air. 'He'll be coming with me. I'll take him.' He steered Heero firmly around Duo, who was still in a state of shock, and Conan and swiftly exited from the room.  
  
Heero started to chuckle as Trowa held his hand tightly and lengthened his strides to match the taller boy's, both picking up speed immediately when a sudden loud howl pierced the air, as Duo snapped out of his shock. The two fled out of the at a dead run, not bothering to look behind them as they pelted down the stairs and jumped into Trowa's car, slamming the doors shut as the car roared into life.   
  
'There's such a thing as too much popularity.' Trowa scolded with a mock frown as he pressed down on the accelerator.  
  
Heero laughed, and put out his hand to cover Trowa's hand on the wheel. 'The only person I want to be popular with is you. The only one I want to be with is you.'  
  
'Say that again.' Trowa whispered back, feeling his throat drying as he waited.  
  
'The only one I want is you.' Heero whispered back and squeezed the hand under his own gently. 'I love you.'  
  
The car skidded to a stop with a loud squeal from the tires as Trowa slammed on the brakes.   
  
*****  
  
~Owari~  
  
Kat: Yes. I'm evil. ^_^ I have to stop here. After all Trowa and Heero deserve to have a little privacy after all that. The fic is finished and complete. It's a One shot humour fic. I just wanted to have a bit of fun and it got a lot longer than I intended. I don't suppose anyone wanted to read Quatre's fairytale to the end?   
  
Oh and by the way? The beholder in the title is my humble self, which explains why Heero has so many guys after him. ::sighs:: You should try seeing how gorgeous he is from MY eyes! ^_~   
  
By the way, Tenchi is from the 3rd movie, that's the one where I saw him with the long hair. In a word, Yum. As for the 2nd guest star I don't know if anyone's seen 'Detective Conan' yet but just remember that the guy in the story is a grown up version.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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